Nevada Marriage Age Requirements Laws

You can't throw a rock out the window on Las Vegas Boulevard without hitting a wedding chapel. Well, just about. The point is there are Nevada marriages occurring seemingly around the clock. But even those late night chapel weddings have to adhere to certain rules to form a legally-binding union.

With all the buzz that accompanies marriage and weddings -- venues, centerpieces, the dress -- it can be easy to forget that marriage is a legally binding contract. Even if you are opting for the simplest of ceremonies at tiny wedding chapel, the prospect of starting a new life as a married couple can often overshadow serious consideration of marriage’s legal implications.

Nevada Marriage Age Requirements

Anyone who is legally an adult is free to get married in the U.S. -- although many states still restrict marriage to heterosexual couples. Since marriage is a legal contract, there are, of course, certain requirements that must be met for the marriage to be valid. Before a couple can be married in Nevada, they must have a marriage license and be of legal age to be married.

Every state has its own age requirement to be married. Because marriage has important legal and financial implications which can be extremely detrimental to one or both parties if they choose to divorce, the state wants to ensure that the parties are old enough to understand -- each state has age requirements for those wishing to marry.

Nevada Marriage Laws

In Nevada, marriage age requirement laws require both parties to be at least 16 years old if they each have their parent’s consent. If they do not have their parent’s consent, each party must be at least 18 years old. For a summary of Nevada's marriage age requirement laws check out the table displayed below:

Code Section

122.020, 025

Minimum Legal Age With Parental Consent

Male: 16; Female: 16

Minimum Legal Age Without Parental Consent

Male: 18; Female: 18

Comments

Minors under 16 may obtain license by parental consent and approval of court in extraordinary circumstances.

Note: State laws are constantly changing -- contact an attorney or conduct your own legal research to verify the state law(s) you are researching.